MIKE FRIGHT:  How to Succeed In Media Interviews When a Mike Wallace Wannabe Comes Calling

A number of people who sell their services as media consultants make a living by frightening their clients with what is known in the trade as “blood on the floor interviews.” Workshop participants are asked embarrassing personal questions that set hearts to beating and adrenaline pumping. In the role of “reporter,” the consultant comes at you like a mean ass drill sergeant making you feel like Gomer Pyle without the smile.  It’s all pretty exciting, but, truth to tell, clients are being prepared for the reporters they fear, not the ones they’ll actually meet

Are there hostile reporters?  Of course there are, which is why Mike Fright devotes a chapter to “How to Handle The Hostile Reporter,”offering tried and true defusing techniques that work equally well with the Mike Wallace wannabe and the uninformed reporter.   However, in working with companies and governmental agencies across the country, David has found that “blood on the floor” interviews are as rare as Weight Watchers meetings at a Waffle House.  That is why Mike Fright takes a different approach.

There’s good news and there’s bad news about the media interview you’ll be involved in.  The good news is that the vast majority of modern reporters make every attempt to be fair, honest and objective.  Quite a few will throw in helpful, friendly, courteous and kind for good measure.  That’s the good news.  The bad news is that you are quite capable of putting your foot in their mouths without any help from a Mike Wallace wannabe.  And, even if your feet remain on the floor where they belong, you can fail your media test in countless other ways you haven’t even dreamed of.

If you’re going to be facing television and print reporters, you need to know the potential pitfalls and how to avoid them.  But, while this book may be useful as a survival manual, its primary purpose is to take you beyond coping.  As you come to understand how television and print reporters work and how you can work with them, you’ll become more comfortable with the interview process and more effective at telling your story.  The starting point is philosophical.  To be an effective spokesperson you need to view the interview not as an ordeal to be survived, but as an opportunity to communicate to and through the reporters you’ll meet. 

In the course of reading (or listening to) this book, you’ll come to understand:

How to take co-ownership of your interview
How to have your own agenda
How to use the A-Team question answering model
How to prepare for a “Snell’s Law” question
How to defuse hostile or uninformed questions
How to build better bridges
How to exercise your “not live options”

In Mike Fright you will learn about:

THE NEWS MEDIA AND YOU
While hostile reporters are few, interviewees often stumble because they don’t claim co-ownership of the interview and don’t have their own agenda.

THE (TELEVISION) NEWS BIZ
Once a “loss leader,” television news programs are now profitable, resulting in bigger “news holes” and a greater appetite for stories of all kinds.

UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL
The audience for your interview numbers no more than one to three persons per household, so you should think of it as a personal medium.

OWNING YOUR OWN INTERVIEW
Since most interviews are “between consenting adults,” you should take co-ownership, making sure you get your story told.

HAVING YOUR OWN AGENDA
To claim co-ownership of your interview requires you to have an agenda; several things you WILL talk about whatever questions the reporter asks.

SNELL’S LAW
Count on it: “The question you most dread will be asked.”  So, instead of wasting time on dread, prepare your best possible answer.

UPSIDE DOWN ANSWERS
When you fail to give a direct answer, the reporter and people watching your interview think you are being evasive.

A-TEAM QUESTION ANSWERING MODEL
With this questioning answer model, you answer directly and give your Top-Brick Position before giving your evidence and the advantages of your position..

BUILDING BETTER BRIDGES
Don’t be a slave to the questions reporters ask.  Answer their questions, then use a simple bridge to something you want to talk about.                                 

YOUR NOT LIVE OPTIONS
Since most interviews are video taped (rather than “live”) you can use two “not live” options. 1-Pause; 2-Repeat Yourself.

HANDLING THE HOSTILE REPORTER
“Blood on the floor” interviews are as rare as a Weight Watchers meeting at a Waffle House, but when they happen you should give your answer using one of four “defuse” techniques.

THE WESTMORELAND SYNDROME
If you don’t know the answer to a question, say so.  If you once knew or should know, say, “I don’t know, but I’ll check it out and get back to you.”

WHEN BAD THINGS HAPPEN TO GOOD COMPANIES
Report bad news first, then the cause (if you know it) and action to be taken to correct the situation or guard against it happening again.  Stick with the facts you know.  Don’t speculate or answer hypothetical questions.

WHAT TO DO WHEN 60 MINUTES CALLS
It’s a mistake to underestimate what your interviewer will know about you and your company. Prepare answers for all his/her Snell’s Law questions.

REFOCUSING 20/20
Sometimes you can convince producers of news magazine programs that their take on a story is wrong and persuade them to change course or drop the story completely.

THE CARE AND FEEDING OF REPORTERS
Help them understand the background of the story. Respect their deadlines. Avoid going “off the record” and if you can’t comment, explain why.

WHAT TO DO WHEN IT IS LIVE
Get there early. “Try on” the room. Talk out loud. Wear makeup.  Avoid jangely jewelry. Look at the person asking you questions.

THE INTERVIEWEE’S BILL OF RIGHTS
Ten basic “rights” every interviewee has from setting the ground-rules to correcting reporter’s misstatements to using notes.

CHOOSING A SPOKESPERSON
The right spokesperson 1-Knows the subject; 2-Understands the organization’s goals and objectives; 3-Is able to tell and sell what he/she knows. 4-Has the confidence of management and 5-Wants to do the interview.
                                               
BIAS IN THE MEDIA
There is some, but PR professionals say the vast majority of reporters will treat you fairly.  Understanding the nature of bias that does exist will enable you to win the interview game.

COPYRIGHT
MIKE FRIGHT: How to Succeed in Media Interviews When a Mike Wallace Wannabe Comes Calling Copyright © 2009 by Snell Communications.  All rights reserved.  Except for the original download, no part of this Ebook may be reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in brief critical articles and reviews. For information, address Snell Communications, 5227 Greenpoint Drive,Stone Mountain, GA 30088

SECOND EDITION
Page design by Sean Smith
Cover & Drawings by Paul Brown

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Contact David Snell

“Your book is terrific.”
Fraser Seitel, Publisher, The Public Relations Strategist

“Damn Good!”
 Mike Wallace, CBS News 60-Minutes

“This is the best book yet about handling the often rocky terrain of media interviews. Drawing on thirteen years experience as a network news correspondent and nearly twenty years as a communications consultant, David Snell delivers the goods in the same highly anecdotal style that has kept him in demand as a speaker and trainer. If you meet the media, Mike Fright is a must buy.”
William C. Adams, Associate Professor of Public Relations, Florida International University